LAKELAND, Fla. (Tennis) – Mariaxi Herrera said "it is amazing to have a coach that expects us to come out and compete with the best in the country. We are beyond thrilled to have her push us to our greatest potential on and off the court."
Fourteen matches into the first year under head coach
Autumn Williams, Javelina Nation is getting an inside glimpse as to just how much this team can accomplish as Texas A&M University-Kingsville (8-6) upset No. T-45 Florida Southern College (2-7), 7-2, on Tuesday afternoon at the Wynee Warden Tennis Center.
The win was TAMUK's first versus a nationally-ranked NCAA Division II institution and second win over a nationally-ranked opponent in seven days after the Hogs downed No. 13 North Central Texas College late last week.
The Javelinas nearly swept all three doubles matches after
Erika Larrea and
Paula Saenz defeated Katie Taylor-Duran and Katie Stanford, 8-2, in doubles No. 3 and Herrera and
Marija Dimitrovska took doubles No. 1 over Magda Riutort and Olivia Spagnuolo, 8-5, but the Mocs were able to salvage a win in doubles No. 2, 9-8 (7-4).
In singles action,
Tabata Lua blanked Stanford in No. 4, 6-0, 6-0, and Larrea improved her singles mark to 9-1 with a 6-1, 6-2 win in flight No. 6 to give the Hogs a 4-1 edge over FSC. Dimitrovska clinched the victory for the Javelinas with an impressive 6-1, 6-3 win over Taylor-Duran in singles No. 3 as Kingsville earned a milestone victory over a team that entered the 2014-15 season ranked No. 10 in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Preseason Poll.
Despite already earning the win, Texas A&M-Kingsville continued to battle as Saenz picked up a 6-3, 6-2 win in singles No. 5 and Herrera recorded a tiebreaking victory in lane No. 1, rallying from behind after falling in the first set, 5-7, 6-1, 10-8.
This year's team has already surpassed the last three seasons in the win column and the Javelinas are expected to feature Herrera (singles) and Dimitrovska and Herrera (doubles) ranked in the latest ITA regional poll, set to be released Wednesday afternoon.
The Javelinas continue their Fla. trip tomorrow when they take on State University of New York at Geneseo (11-0) at 9 a.m. CT. The No. 14 Knights improved to 11-0 with a 5-4 win in their spring opener over Savannah College of Art and Design Atlanta, 5-4, on Tuesday. At 2 p.m. CT, the Hogs will battle No. T-45 University of Tampa (5-5). Both matches will take place on the Naimoli and Young Family Tennis Complex on the campus of UT.
Wednesday's meeting will be the inaugural meeting versus both opponents.
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